Butterfly Kisses
by Nefhithiel
Summary: Prince Legolas of Mirkwood has a younger brother named Lenwe. A Chronicle of Lenwe's life through hardship and happiness.
1. Lenwe Wilwarin

_This story is mostly about Lenwe, my character, although Legolas does play a major role in the early chapters. The story will chronicle Lenwe's life. BG- Lenwe is Legolas' younger brother and they live together in Mirkwood._

_Disclaimer: Legolas and Thrandiul and Mirkwood and Middle Earth all belong Professor John Ronald Reul Tolkien, Except Lenwe. He is mine._

I could fall asleep to Keane. My name is Lenwë. I am an Elf. I am over 2000 years old. This is my story.

2000 years ago, in a land called Middle Earth, I was born. I was a prince, royalty, son of the Lord of Mirkwood, King Thranduil. Power and influence were handed to me instantly. Members of the gentry, hundreds of years old, bowed to me, a mere infant.

But there was one who would not bow, not then or ever.

My older brother, Legolas, Crown Prince of Mirkwood. It was his honor alone to bear the mark of our clan. His honor to be bedecked with green. But he was not ever cold to me in his superiority. In fact, the rank difference was never even discussed between us. For by the time I was old enough to understand, he was gone.

But our time together I savoured more than anything. He taught me the skills of an Elf of Mirkwood, the exact way to hold a bow. I had wanted to learn so badly, and he indulged my every whim.

"Nay, Lenwë, you must hold the bow so the arrow fires upward at a precise angle to create better lift."

"But Brother, you are so much taller than I am, and your bow is so very heavy."

Legolas' eyes crinkled into a smile, "Yes, I suppose it is too big for you, isn't it?" Then he laughed as I nearly fell to the ground under the bow's weight. "Come, I have a gift for you. I was saving it for your next name-day, but now is a more appropriate time, I think."

I followed him through the wood to a little glade I had never been to before. A place now deeply close to my heart.

" I come here when I need to be alone, when I need to think," he said softly.

"What do you think about, Brother?"

"Adult matters, Lenwë. Taking a wife, managing Father's affairs, all the stress of being Crown Prince." He sighed, "It's all well and good for you, my dear little Princeling. You'll never have to worry about things like that."

It seemed to me that a terrible, profound sadness briefly wafted across my brother's face, but the next second it was gone.

He sat, pensive for a moment, looking out over the little stream, then he got up suddenly, as if he had just remembered why we were there.

"Ah, yes. Your gift." He smiled. And he went to fetch something from a secret box beneath a tree.

"A bow for my very own?" I asked in wonderment.

"Yes. Precisely calculated to fit your proportions."

Words seemed beyond my capability. Here in my hands lay a beautiful thing. I examined it from every angle, running my hands over the intricate carvings, depicting butterflies and vines and leaves, feeling the tension in the bowstring, just right.

"Thank you, Brother, I will treasure it always."

"Or at least until you grow out of it," he laughed.

I smiled in acquiescence, but he was wrong. I have kept the bow to this day. It holds too many memories.

"Let's go back, Lenwë."

"Hm!" I nodded.

A few months later came the celebration that is most important in the life of a young elf of Mirkwood, my thirteenth name-day. The day when I would receive a second name, full of meaning and history from my father, a rite of passage. But Thranduilion, the family name, was already taken by my much older brother. I must take another name. The handmaidens, my mother the Queen's women, dressed me in the royal blue befitting a second son. My mother said I was the jewel of the sky. Waiting for the ceremony to start, I was flitting about the garden, waving the sleeves of my long robe in the sunlight.

"Lenwë," my brother called to me. "The ceremony is about to start. Let's go! What are you doing?"

"Playing with the butterflies, you know I think they are the most beautiful in all of Middle Earth."

"You look just like them, little Princeling, with your flowing robes. Come, we must go," he remonstrated.

"Aye."

I was looking forward to receiving a new name, to becoming an adult in the eyes of the People. When the naming ceremony began, I felt a wave of nervous tension slide over me. I barely heard the ceremonial incantations as the elders prepared me to receive my second name, but at the appointed time for my father to give me a new name, my brother stepped up instead.

"Lenwë," he said, "has grown up under my care. So my father and I have decided that I, the man who knows him best, shall give Lenwë his second name."

He cleared his throat, "and that name is…" he paused, "Wílwarîn."

Applause broke out. I was numb. The name was beautiful. It was the name of my favorite creature, the butterfly. Words failed me, but I knew then that I loved my brother more than anything in the all the world.

Lenwë Wílwarîn.

Lenwë Wílwarîn.

Lenwë Wílwarîn.

I kept saying it over and over inside my head. It sounded good, great. Better than great. It was perfect.

_Yay! this is the first story I have ever written. I usually write poems and such. Please review, comment and critique! Oh, but nothing like "OMG spazzz legolas liek totally does Nawt hve a brother this rellly sux0rz!11" I have read the books of Tolkein (rest his soul) more than you have, probably :). Be Nice to a new writer!_


	2. A Matter of the Heart

_Whee! Chapter 2! Thanks to Haldir's Heart and Soul and LOTRFaith for reviewing! YAY! A note: The character Luinen is based off of a character by Ilza10. Ilza won my Lenwe fan art contest. So her character, Rio, was elfisised and put in this story by moi. Ilza art can be found here: http/ilzathebeastomatic. all Middle Earth-ness belongs to Professor Tolkien Lenwe (c) me and Rio/Luinen(c) Ilza 10. With some tweaking to Luinen by me._

The days passed in cheery bliss. The perfumed air creating an atmosphere of calm. I wished that these times would never end, but I would not be so happy. They would come crashing down around me, with little room for escape.

But, in the flower of my youth, I spent my days with Luínen, my closest companion. We were really suited for each other. I, on the steady levelheaded side, was her complete opposite.

Luínen was fiery and spontaneous. She was bubbly and outgoing, just like her name, Luínen means river. It was not her real name, she never told me that. But for me, it was enough. I was in awe of her: the confident way she carried herself, her unique dress, her ruby red hair. I wouldn't say that I loved her. Love is too strong a word to be used idly. Rather, I idolized her. We were best friends, but I wanted to _be_ her, not just be near her.

Luínen was ostracized by the rest of the elves for her outward appearance, so rare in the Sindarian race. But she did not mind. In fact, I think she rather preferred it that way. I remember one day quite vividly, the two of us were sitting by the river, staring aimlessly into the mere.

"Lenwë?" she questioned me.

"Yes?" I returned.

"What do you think of me?"

I did not know quite what to say. I looked at her ruby eyes, eyes that matched her hair perfectly, piercing me with their stare. She held that stare for several long moments, and then the spell was broken.

"Well?" she demanded. "It's not hard. What do you think?"

"I think… I think you are beautiful. As beautiful as the stars, and the harvest moon," I stammered. She did not appear satisfied, however, so I continued. "I need you. You are the only one I can talk to about certain things."

"What sort of things?" She rolled over.

"Secrets, things I am afraid of, matters of the heart really. I could never talk about anything like that with Legolas. He would never understand."

"You might be surprised what he could understand." She sat up and turned away. "You are so lucky to have him, you know? He treats you like his son. I never knew my father. I asked my mother once, who he was, she would only tell me that he was powerful, and handsome."

I looked over at her and saw fresh tears glistening on her tanned face. The sight was not pitiful; she still looked strong but she had an air of sorrow about her fit the break even the most hardened war hero's heart.

"Ai, Luínen, don't cry!" I reached for her shoulder.

"I'm not crying!" she yelled savagely, pulling away from me. "It's just… raining…that's all… raining."

She cried on my shoulder for nearly half an hour. But she did not cry for her father, or for herself, but for me.

"Oh Lenwë, I shall miss you ever so much!" she wailed.

"But, Luínen, I am not going anywhere."

"No, but I am. Mother and I leave tonight. We are going to the west, to the sea. There we can live in peace."

"It will be dangerous," I cautioned.

"Anybody would have to be stupid to challenge me," she retorted.

And she was right. I had often come out on the wrong end of a tussle with her. We had gotten very good at explaining away black eyes and cuts and scrapes, the two of us.

It was nearing dusk. The clearing that was our theater for life was darkening and all the noises of the night were warming up their act.

"I must go." She swooped upon me and swiftly kissed me. "I must go," she repeated. "Good-bye, Lenwë Wílwarîn, Son of Thranduil, second son of Mirkwood!"

"Good-bye" I managed to whisper as she walked out of my life forever. I never knew what happened to her after that, whether she had made it to the sea or not. I stood rooted to the spot, alone with my emotions and the nighttime creatures in the dark of midsummer's eve.

_Chapter 3 coming soon! Oh- Rio is Spanish for river. Luinen is Elvish for river. I'm not insane, I promise!_


	3. Brotherly Love

_Thanks to Rutu, LOTRFaith and Haldir's Heart and Soul for their support! I'm glad the story has fans! (weeps happily). Rutu's question: It means Legolas leaves before Lenwe is really grown up and wise to the world. But it will all unfold in the coming chapters, I just need to set pen to paper. But now I'm tired._

_Disclaimer: Legolas, Mirkwood and all other LotR things belong to Tolkien, Lenwe belongs to me. _

I wandered back towards the hall of my father, King Thranduil. All I could do was stare at the ground, half-hoping for it to swallow me up. The ground never had a chance. As soon as I reached the edge of the wood, I was intercepted by my brother.

"Onoöro!" he called. I knew then that he needed me to do something for him. That was the only time he used his pet name for me, now that I was an 'adult'. I owed him so many favors, how could I refuse?

"Yes, Brother, what is it? What do you want?"

"Why do you assume I want something? I just wanted to spend some time with my baby brother," he simpered.

I grimaced. 'Baby brother' was a name I despised.

"Brother, I have an adult name now. I'm not a baby anymore." I pulled roughly away from his grasp.

"Yes, you are all grown up then, aren't you?" A flicker of pain appeared on my brother's face, like a light from a candle flaring and then going out. I realized I had hurt my brother very deeply. He was never one to flaunt his private emotions, my brother. He kept them hidden away, clandestine in his heart. But I could see right through his veil. The closeness of brotherly love gave me this power over his walled sanctum.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled.

"Sorry? For what, dear brother?"

"For the way I treated you just then. It was… It was wrong of me to speak so harshly. I am, and always will be your … your baby brother," I choked.

"Well, I am quite glad to hear that. Quite glad indeed." He stooped, and embraced me. "I love you very much, Lenwë. I'm not quite sure what I would do if I ever lost you. It would… it would destroy me." He held me for a very long time.

I was not sure how to put it into words, but I felt the same way he did. I looked into my brother's eyes, at this moment a deep dark blue. His gaze was so pure and so clear; I felt I had lost myself in his stare.

The spell was broken when two palace guards ran out and turned a hasty salute.

"A thousand pardons my Lords Legolas and Lenwë," boomed the first. He bowed. "The king, your father, desires an audience with you, Prince Legolas." They bowed and retreated a distance.

Legolas sighed, "I knew this was to come. We are on the brink of dark times. Very dark times indeed." He cast a grey stare across the trees. "You must not come with me Lenwë. The counsel we take tonight is to be dark and secretive, and must never leave the ears of those in attendance. I am sorry, Lenwë, but you are too young for these dark tidings, even though you are of age among our people. This matter goes far beyond Mirkwood. Far beyond young Princes." He motioned for the guards to return to the circle of light that surrounded his lantern. "Please see Master Lenwë safely to his chambers, and make sure he stays there." He smiled at me. "Tonight will be dangerous," he added in an undertone to the guards.

My brother took my hand. "Please mind the guards Lenwë, for me?" he pleaded. At the terrified look in his eyes, I could do nothing but comply. Legolas looked relieved and turned to greet a strange company, which had just assembled. Before I was steered out of sight, I saw a tall person in a pointed, rather bent hat and a taller person in a cloak maintaining strict watch over a shirking, child-size figure. The figure occasionally uttered contemptuous shrieks that filled me with terror.

I was relieved to arrive in the quiet of my chamber. I immediately settled myself down to think. As I went about my nightly chores, I rolled everything that had happened over in my mind, analyzing every bit of data I could recall. My brother had greeted the cloaked stranger as one would an old friend, and he had given the hatted stranger a reverential bow. I concluded that the shrieking thing was a prisoner of some importance. But why would they bring it here? Who was he? What was he? These were the questions that turned over in my mind as I slept. Before I completely nodded off, I resolved to make Legolas tell me all that had happened the next morning.

_So there is Chapter 3. This should set some sort of time period for when this takes place with regards to the Tolkien canon, Gollum has just been brought to Mirkwood. Hope you liked it! _


	4. Alone, Again

_The latest chapter! Thanks to my three loyal reviewers! Spring Break is over now, so I don't know when I will be able to next update. (sigh) Enjoy!_

_ Disclaimer: All things but Lenwe and Luinen belong to Prof. Tolkien_

I awoke with a start. I had had the most wondrous dream! I tried to recall the details, but it was like holding on to water. Everything was gone by the time I was fully awake, save one detail. Luínen had been in my dreams. It was then that I realized I would never see her again. The pain had been dulled by the events of yester-night, but now it hit me full in the face. I felt like my very breath was stolen away. Hot tears fought to escape their prison and rolled down my cheeks. I felt bitterly and utterly alone.

It was then that my brother entered the room. He crossed and sat on the edge of my bed.

"Come, dear brother. Why do you weep? It pains me to see you so."

I then imparted unto him all the details of Luínen and her mother leaving Mirkwood, never to return.

"They go to the sea, brother! And I shall never see them again!" I bemoaned.

"No, you shall never see them again with your eyes. But look deeper, little Princeling! You may see them with your heart, always. And the memory shall never be stained with grief or grow stale in the reliving. You will see them, always." He sighed. "These tidings bring sadness to my eyes also. Long have I known Morwen and her daughter." It took me a moment to realize that Morwen was Luínen's mother.

"I did not realize you knew them also, brother," I said.

"Yes. But it was many summers ago. I have not spoken with Morwen for a very long time." He cast his eyes out the window. "It is a glorious winter's morning, is it not?"

I nodded. "Brother, what happened last night? Who were those strange figures?"

He surveyed me carefully, evidently weighing in his mind what I could and could not hear. Finally, he spoke.

"The one in the hat was none other than Mithrandir himself." He paused, waiting for my reaction. I stood there, nonplussed. "But certainly you know of Mithrandir, the wisest of the Istari?" I shook my head. Legolas seemed upset, but he patiently explained that Mithrandir was a wizard who has wandered the land for many ages, always giving help to those in need. "Now," he said, "The cloaked figure was Aragorn, chief of the Dúnadan. He and I have a history together, but that is a long story. He has captured a most foul creature in the festering marshlands to the east of here. Mithrandir now entrusts the elves of Mirkwood to keep watch over him. The creature is clever and wicked. You must never go near him. He is a servant of The Enemy."

Even I knew what 'The Enemy' meant. My eyes went very wide, and I gave my word to never go near the thing. Indeed, I had no desire at all to make its acquaintance.

"Lenwë, the Lord Aragorn desires to speak with you; he is eager to meet my younger brother. Be sure to make yourself presentable. He will eat the midday meal with us. Then I am off to see him to the border of our lands. The Dúnadan has duties to attend to in the West." He then tuned on his heel and left. I could tell he hadn't got a wink of sleep the night before, his skin gave off no glow and his eyes seemed dull.

Almost immediately after my brother left, my mother and her handmaidens came in to bathe me and dress me for the meal. I resented this intrusion on my privacy, but stood it only to meet the Lord Aragorn, for he much piqued my curiosity. Two hours later, scrubbed pink with clean and dressed in a rich robe I only wore the one time, I slowly made my way to the Great Hall of the King.

There I met Legolas and my father. Father seemed happy to see me. He stood up and embraced me, caressing my cheeks. I winced as his fingers, soft as they were, touched my raw flesh.

"Ada, please!" I whispered. The scent of wine was already upon him, not yet midday. He released me, and I went to my seat, to the left of Legolas. A tall man with fair grey eyes sat to the right of my father. He surveyed me and gave me a kind smile.

"And so, Lord Aragorn, here is my other son, very recently turned of age. Lenwë Wílwarîn!" boomed my father.

I stood up and made a hasty bow. My already red cheeks reddened even further to be singled out so. "It…it is an honour to make your acquaintance, my Lord," I stammered. I then sat down rather quickly.

Aragorn stood up and then spoke in a clear voice, "Thank you, most honoured Thranduil for your hospitality. It has been good for these weary limbs." He held up his flagon. "To King Thranduil, son of Oropher. May your halls be ever full, and may your domain be ever green." He nodded his head towards my father, my brother and me, each in turn, before sitting down. Applause broke out and rang through the hall. Talk resumed, rising like a flock of birds from a disturbed tree. He then raised his flagon again, but towards me and said quietly, "Well met, Lenwë Wílwarîn, Son of Thrainduil." He then drank of his cup deeply.

I was among the party that saw Lord Aragorn and the members of his escort off from the palace gates. There was much revelry and celebration, as if it was a party for a king, not a Chieftain of the West. I felt, perhaps there was more to this man than was revealed.

"Goodbye, Lenwë!" my brother called. "I will be back tomorrow eventide!"

"Goodbye, Brother! May your journey be free of peril!" I returned. I caught the gaze of Aragorn and he again nodded his head to me. I, in turn, gave him the most graceful bow I could muster. I then turned away and made my way back to my chambers, cries of "Namárië" and "Quel fara" still lilting through the windows hewn from stone. I arrived at my door and flopped down on my bed in a state of lethargy, alone again.

_A/N- Quel fara means "good hunting" Next chapter on Sat 16 or around that date if I have any free time at all. Have a good day! _


End file.
